According to a report from New Atlas, the Norwegian company World Wide Wind is creating a new form of floating, vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) that it believes will fundamentally alter and enhance how we harness the power of the wind.
According to the business, their VAWTs use two sets of counter-rotating blades to provide twice as much output as the largest turbines now available.
New counter-rotating vertical turbine doubles energy output
VAWTs, in contrast to conventional offshore wind turbines, frequently have their heavier components near the bottom, with the exception of their blades, which means they have a lower center of gravity. Additionally, they don’t have to pivot to face the wind direction in order to receive wind energy from any direction, which reduces the need for some large machinery.
The contra-rotating vertical turbine, or CRVT, created by World Wide Wind functions as two VAWTs together. While the higher one is mounted at the top, the lower one revolves around the tower’s stem. They are both programmed to rotate in different directions. With one turbine coupled to the rotor and the other to the “stator,” the relative speed of rotation is doubled compared to a static stator, increasing the amount of electricity produced.
According to World Wide Wind, the CRVT will tilt with the wind and use specifically made blades that should aid to lessen turbulent wake downstream from each individual tower. This, according to the report, should enable operators to pack more turbines into a specific space, enabling them to produce more electricity.
By 2029, World Wide Wind hopes to have a functional 40-MW model.
The 794 ft (242 meters) tall MingYang Smart Energy 16.0-242, which has a 16 MW capacity, is currently the tallest wind turbine in the world. As their system can scale up to a height of 1,312 feet (400 m), allowing for a colossal 40-megawatt capacity per unit, World Wide Wind claims they will completely destroy such estimates.
Representatives from the company told Recharge that fast prototyping is being used to accelerate the CRVT’s development. By 2026, they want to have a 3-MW model ready, and by 2029, they want to have one of the gigantic 40-MW machines.
It is important to note that World Wide Wind has not yet offered any proof or research to back up the effectiveness and production of its CRVT. Before we can start trusting the buzz, there is still a great deal of work to be done. Though it has relationships with Uppsala University, Sinted, North Wind, Kjeller Vindteknik, Norwegian Energy Partners, and the Norwegian Offshore Wind Cluster, World Wide Wind does have a lot of supporters.
We hope this strong alliance succeeds and delivers on the enormous power estimates it has announced to the world, given the catastrophic situation the world faces and the pressing need for more efficient renewable energy solutions.